1950s
Robert Krupp
(M.S. PHYS ’56, Ph.D. PHYS ’65), Plainfield, Ill., is a retired professor of physics. His book Laura and Grandpa Discovering Da Vinci was named by Mom’s Choice Awards as among the best family-friendly products suitable for juvenile readers. Since 2011, four of Krupp’s picture storybooks written for children about scientific topics have been recognized and presented with an MCA award.
1960s
Hayden Aronson
(PHYS ’64), Corvallis, Ore., has had three distinct careers—first, as a rocket scientist working on the Saturn rocket; second, as a physics teacher; and third, as a software manager for an engineering company. He has three daughters and recently welcomed his first grandchild.
Roy Coleman
(PHYS ’64), Chicago, taught high school physics for more than 40 years, and worked at IIT in the SMILE and SMART programs. He and his wife were ranked in the road rallying top 10 nationally for several years by the Sports Car Club of America. He has been the Chicago-area first-place grandmaster rallyist for seven out of the last 15 years.
Frank Dean
(MATH ’64, M.S. ’66), Albuquerque, N.M., retired from Sandia National Laboratories. He and his wife, Pat, have two sons.
Moshe Eres
(EE ’64, M.S. ’65), Kfar Maas, Israel, is enjoying retirement with his wife, six daughters, and 10 grandchildren.
George Frank
(ME ’64), Centennial, Colo., has lived in the Denver area for more than 30 years. He and his wife of 44 years, Mary, have three daughters.
Michael Friduss
(IE ’64), Highland Park, Ill., worked in the telephone industry for 30 years, including as chief operations officer at Michigan Bell and as a vice president at Ameritech. He and his wife have two children and a one-year-old granddaughter.
James Gabala
(PHYS ’64), Schaumburg, Ill., spent his career as a patent and corporate intellectual property attorney while also serving 23 years as a captain with the U.S. Navy Reserve. He is a private pilot of a single-engine land aircraft. Gabala has been married for more than 25 years and is close to his many nieces and nephews.
Ronald Golden
(CHEM ’64), Marietta, Ga., received his Ph.D. in physical organic chemistry from the University of Chicago, spent more than 40 years in the chemical industry, and has been consulting since 2005.
Christopher Hill
(CHE ’64), Knoxville, Tenn., earned his Ph.D. in chemical engineering and went on to a career in science, technology, and innovation policy; he now spends about half his time working with SRI International in the Middle East.
Ronna Page
(MATH ’64, M.S. MT ’75), Chicago, taught mathematics in a public school district outside Chicago for 30 years. She is an avid reader and embroiderer, and has traveled widely in the U.S. to attend stitching seminars.
Charles Rice
(ARCH ’64), Racine, Wis., started his own architecture firm in 1970, which is still going strong after 44 years. He and his wife have two daughters and two grandchildren.
David Rogers
(M.S. EE ’64), Fargo, N.D., earned both a Ph.D. in electrical engineering and a master of divinity degree after IIT. He taught in Brazil until 1980 and then relocated to North Dakota, where he is still a professor. He and his wife, Darlene, have been married for 49 years.
Barry Spielman
(EE ’64), Ellisville, Mo., earned a Ph.D. in electrical engineering and went on to a career with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and as a professor. He and his wife, Louise, have two children.
Anthony Stavros
(MET ’64), Carmel, Ind., earned his Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University and worked for Bethlehem Steel for 17 years and Union Carbide (Praxair) for 22. He developed a method to protect steel rolls from molten zinc or aluminum that was used to produce automotive-grade galvanized steel sheets.
Connie Tregay
(BIOL ’64), Rockford, Ill., founded and runs a nature center at Camp Awana. She spent her career as a mother to seven children and a foster mother to 98. She has attended 14 World’s Fairs, driven the United States from coast to coast, and visited all 50 states as well as all provinces of Canada and 40 other countries.
Alan Unikel
(IE ’64), Hinsdale, Ill., spent his career as an intellectual property and patent law attorney, having worked early in his career for John Paul Stevens before he became a justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. Unikel and his wife, Eva, have three children and four grandchildren.
Kenneth Wolniak
(EE ’64), Littleton, Colo., received his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago in 1972 and spent his career in the finance industry, working as a stockbroker, financial advisor, and tax preparer. He has two sons and four grandsons.
John Zulaski
(M.S. EE ’65), Mount Prospect, Ill., was recognized by IEEE–USA in August 2014 for the creation of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) teaching programs at public libraries in nine states using STEM kits.
Charles Gregersen
(ARCH ’66), Chicago, is author of the book Louis Sullivan and His Mentor, John Herman Edelmann, Architect.
Marianne King
(LAW ’66), Portland, Ore., spent her career in education, has worked to create nutrition education programs for the National Dairy Council, and has established a nonprofit vocational and job readiness agency. She and her husband met at IIT and have been married for 51 years; they have two children and two grandchildren.
Kathleen Thorne-Thomsen
(DSGN ’67), Santa Fe, N.M., wrote a new book, Frank Lloyd Wright for Kids.
John Ason
(MATH ’68), Westfield, N.J., has been a professional angel investor for approximately 17 years and has funded more than 40 startup companies.
Leon Hoffman
(M.S. PSYC ’69, Ph.D. ’70), Chicago, maintains a thriving private practice of clinical psychology in the city. A lifelong chamber music cellist, Hoffman also writes on disparate subjects for lay, scientific, and professional publications.
Thomas Morel
(M.S. ME ’69, Ph.D. ’72) was awarded the Soichiro Honda Medal at the President’s Luncheon during the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2014 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition. The Soichiro Honda Medal, established in 1983 in recognition of Soichiro Honda’s exemplary achievements in the field of personal transportation, is awarded in recognition of an individual’s outstanding achievement or a series of significant engineering contributions in developing improvements in the field of personal transportation. During his time at IIT Armour College of Engineering, Morel was a part of the team that developed The Blue Flame, a rocket-powered car that set the land speed record of 622 mph in 1970.
1970s
Manu Vora
(M.S. CHE ’70, Ph.D. ’75), Naperville, Ill., was selected to receive the 2014 Harrington/Ishikawa Medal. This award is given annually to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the advancement of quality in the Asia Pacific region.
Robert Zagar
(M.S. PSYC ’75), Chicago, published several articles pertaining to reducing youth violence in the journals Behavior Sciences and the Law, Comprehensive Psychology, and Psychological Reports.
Oscar Baile
(M.S. CE ’76), Union City, Calif., is president of Landru Chocolates, which he runs with the help of his wife and son.
William Schmalz
(ARCH ’77), West Hollywood, Calif., has written the book The Architect’s Guide to Writing. He is a principal with the architecture firm Perkins+Will.
Alan Druschitz
(MET ’78, Ph.D. ’82), Blacksburg, Va., was inducted into the Foundry Management & Technology Hall of Honor.
Tesuyuki Hirano
(ARCH ’79), Tokyo, was recognized as a winner in the Japan Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry Awards for Contributors to the Industrial Property Rights System program for fiscal year 2013. Hirano was honored for years of service in the areas of administration, policy development, design, and diplomacy.
1980s
David Bechtol
(EE ’80), Chicago, had a major role as the technical supervisor, co-editor, and producer of the social documentary Free Speech and the Transcendent Journey of Chris Drew, Street Artist.
Bridgette Young Ross
(MGT ’80), Nashville, Tenn., has been named as dean of the chapel and spiritual life at Emory University.
Sherita Ceasar
(ME ’81, M.S. ’84), Philadelphia, was named by Women in Cable Telecommunications, the largest and oldest organization serving women in cable media, as the recipient of the 2014 Women in Technology Award. Ceasar is vice president of national video deployment engineering for Comcast Communications.
John Swan
(EE ’81), San Jose, Calif., won the Outstanding Leadership and Professional Service Award, first for IEEE in Silicon Valley, then for the IEEE Region 6 Central Area.
Mathai Varghese
(MATH ’81), Adelaide, Australia, was awarded the 2014 Silver Jubilee staff memento and certificate in recognition of 25 years of outstanding service to the University of Adelaide.
Kirankumar Topudurti
(Ph.D. ENVE ’88), Champaign, Ill., was recently named a Distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, recognizing his contributions in advancing the engineering, science, and field implementation of innovative hazardous waste remediation, sampling, and characterization technologies. The award is the society’s highest accolade; only 649 of ASCE’s worldwide members have been elected to receive this honor since the society’s founding in 1852.
1990s
Ronald Nordmeyer
(CE ’91), Westfield, Ind., joined Clark Dietz as a senior project manager for the transportation group. Clark Dietz is a recognized leader in civil, environmental, transportation, mechanical, electrical, structural, and industrial engineering.
Anthony LoBello
(ARCH ’92), Downers Grove, Ill., joined SmithGroupJJR, one of the nation’s largest architecture, engineering, and planning firms, as learning studio leader at its Chicago office.
Benedict Jones
(MATH ’94), Aliso Viejo, Calif., and his wife, Alejandra, welcomed their new baby, Vincent. Jones is the volunteer chairperson for the IIT Southern California Alumni Chapter.
Robert Emanuel
(LAW ’95), Chicago, was named managing partner at the Chicago office of Parker Ibrahim & Berg. Emanuel is a member of the board of directors of the Illinois Mortgage Bankers Association.
Jonathan Atwood
(CHE ’96), Chandler, Ariz., was selected by Aviation Week & Space Technology as one of the aerospace and defense industry’s Top 40 Under Forty.
Rodneyse Bichotte
(M.S. EE ’98), Brooklyn, N.Y., won election to the 42nd New York State Assembly District. She is the first Haitian-American from New York City to be elected to the assembly.
Michael Dallas
(CS ’98), Crystal Lake, Ill., is owner of the new craft brewery Scorched Earth Brewing Co., located in Algonquin.
Edward Curley
(ARCH ’99), Chicago, was promoted to associate vice president for business development at Epstein.
2000s
Hisham Saleh
(BAAS ’06), Oak Park, Ill., is the founder of Skeleton Hand, a Chicago-based independent game-development company.
Radhika Jalumuri
(M.A.S. CHE ’07), Los Gatos,Calif., launched RAUES, a company offering made-to-measure, high-quality yet affordable women’s clothing online.
Patrick Bauer and Jennifer Guilfoyle
(AE ’09, M.A.S. MAE ’11) and (CHE ’10), respectively, Glendale Heights, Ill., welcomed their first child, Charles Joseph Bauer, in August 2014.
Michael Dunn
(CS ’10, M.P.A. ’11), Las Vegas, married Amber Lynn Walker in May 2014. The couple recently welcomed their first child, daughter River Grace Dunn.
Amanda (Stenson) Grabowski and Luke Grabowski
(both ME ’10), Lockport, Ill., were married on September 13 at St. Vincent de Paul Church in Lincoln Park.
Lama Abu-Amara
(CPE ’14), Chicago, is now working as a risk and compliance analyst at the headquarters of W. W. Grainger.
Dharmit Patel
(MAS CS ’14), Chicago, was awarded first place in the professional category of the IEEE 2014 Hack Chicago Challenge for his app submission, “Rack Chicago.” He works at IIT as the applications administer, information services in the Office of Institutional Advancement.
Alberta Johnson
(M.P.A.’14), Chicago, was named to Diversity MBA Magazine’s 2014 Top 100 Under 50 Diverse Emerging Leaders.